Demon
Using a 'recharge battery' excuse as one of my tactics, I escaped from that place and saw this fuzzy creature, which caused me to bump into a tree. Behind the tree, there were these two boys, Harrison and Piercy. Brothers, it seemed, from the dialogue between them. But what really intrigued me was that they were talking about some leader or sort, yet they kept referring to him as "The Demon", for some reason. The two were thieves of some sort, but after asking for directions, I parted ways with them, so I didn't ask too many questions. That led me here, and it's been tough." "Demon, huh? Like the creature we ran into in the woods that time?" Atticus asked, intrigued. "I wasn't present for that encounter, but I suppose this can't be a coincidence. Perhaps that really was this guy the Provosts referred to as "The Demon"." Chris explained. "Eh?" A familiar word in Wellington's story sparked something within Steven. "Chris, one second. The two you were talking about ⁠⁠— do you remember them emphasizing the word the, when talking about the demon?" he asked. "They indeed did, I recall." Chris replied, tension building from within. "Why do you ask? Are you aware of this demon?" Atticus leaned forward, listening closely to the young man. "Interesting. And who exactly is The Demon? What is so special about them?" "Met a lot of demons in my time, what the hell is so special about this one?" added Marshall. "The usage of the makes this case special. The Demon is one of the most interesting beings I've studied." began Steven. "Ever since the War started, we've had many accounts from demons and angels on the nature of this demon. Really, we don't even if The Demon really is a demon or not." Atticus sat confused at Steven's speech. "Could you slow down a bit? What war? What ⁠— what are demons and angels? Melissa said "angels" attacked the city, but what are they?" Steven smiled at the boy's curiosity. "I'll give you a "reminder", then. Now, to understand what these beings are, we must first discuss parallel worlds." Atticus scratched his head, completely dumbfounded. "Excuse me, what? A parallel world?" Steven sat back in his chair. "It's easier when you first learn it as a kid, Atticus. This world — Euclid, this universe, is one of many. I don't know how many they are, but they are others. Remember that creature you ran into in the forest? Most likely a demon — a creature from another world, that entered into this one." For those who had not lost their memories in the room, this was of no surprise. While Atticus and Melissa's perception of reality was completely shifted, Chris and Marshall only listened with minor intrigue. "Now — alright, hold on a second." Atticus could barely think properly. It was as if one was told their entire life was false. "How did they get here? Why are they so hostile? What is their "world"?" he questioned. "We are unsure of where they come from. According to most books, they just suddenly appeared one day _____________________ The word caused an alarm to go off in Chris' brain. "Red light? Specifically scarlet-colored?" Chris asked. "Back at the animal feeding station where we woke up, we saw the sky turn red and glow in a rather ominous way. Could this be connected?" "Yeah, yeah, he's right. That day at the barn, just as we were leaving, this huge red light streaked across the sky and colored everything red in its wake," Atticus said. Steven listened to Chris, and fell into his chair, his hand on his chin. "Interesting... I've heard of that happening before, and we look at that from time to time in the lab. I don't agree with its name, but officially, around Euclid, we call that..." he paused for a second. "...The Demon's Light. Yep, that's it. To those who support the 'God' theory, they say it came from The Demon after he fell from his status as a God." "Wow. I — this world is really different from how I thought it was..." said Melissa. "That's pretty insane," Chris realized, "To think that there is some electricity source so powerful..." "Fell from his status as a god?" Atticus repeated. "How did that happen? I'd like to know more, if you have it." "Ehh, I wouldn't know that one. Those at the lab might know," replied Steven. "One time, I thought I heard a god calling me but it was actually just my dad." Marshall sighed, taking a sip of the water left out for him on his bedside table. Atticus rolled his eyes at Marshall's randomness, shaking his head. "At the lab, hm? Could we go by there and check it out? I do not know why, but I feel intrigued by this information." He said, replying to Steven. "A curious one, aren't you? Very well then, I can bring everyone to the lab, and we can discuss this further. Also, you all need a place to stay, right? I know a guy with quite a few free beds..." said Steven. "Stevie, while I want to take the others back to the lab, we are forgetting something." Melissa said before standing, "Where is Savannah? No one has seen or heard from her since the car accident, and I'm really worried something bad has happened." Melissa perked up at the mention of "a place to stay." "That would really help!" she began. "We could finally use a bed to sleep on. Where is this guy?" Steven smiled. "He's an... interesting fellow. I knew him when I was younger, he's got a lab of his own that you all could stay in." "That's a really great idea, I know I'd appreciate having a real place to stay," Chris said, delighted at what Steven had just said. "Well, only if the guy approves me bringing all of you to his lab. Though I'm sure he might like new subjects..." explained Steven. "Subjects? I really don't like the sound of that," Chris said. "Are you saying he experiments on people? Like, will all 5 of us suffer by going there, or will we benefit?" Melissa looked at her brother confused. "What do you mean new subjects?" She asked. Steven was amused at their curiosity. He smiled, not wanting to reveal the secrecy of the mysterious man's work. "He does...a different kind of experimentation, you will see. It's great work he does, I promise." "I guess we can do that, then," Chris said. "But we still have a major problem to deal with." "Experiments? I never agreed to be some wack job's test monkey I'm not just gonna come and let whatever happen, happen!" Melissa said angrily at Steven. "Calm down, Melissa," Atticus said, looking at her. "I'm sure it won't be as bad as you think." Turning his attention to Steven again, he nodded. "This sounds interesting and all, but before we go there, we need to focus on our group. Savannah is still missing."